Resslin' Around, by Casey Ressler

Rhode Island. That's where it sounded like the snowmachine started the quarter-mile drag outside the house. The machine rocketed past my front window in a blur of speed, sped up the slight hill, turned around and repeated, again and again and again. Thankfully, it was only 3:30 a.m. and I still could squeeze in three hours of sleep before I had to get up for work. How considerate of them.

One of the best things about finally getting enough snow is that we all can bust out the snowmachines and take off for an afternoon of fun, hitting the trails, cruising around and enjoying the winter. The problem with getting enough snow to do exactly that is the fact it also brings out every moron in the Valley. You know the type -- despite thousands of miles of trails within minutes of their own home, they would rather speed up and down the streets of residential neighborhoods, putting motorists -- and more importantly, people out for a walk -- at risk.

Don't get me wrong, I don't hate snowmachines, or those who ride. I ride, and my dad is one of the biggest motorheads you'll ever find when it comes to snowmachines. Snowmachining is one of the most fun things to do in the winter. But I don't particularly care for the idiots who don't know how to respect other people.

It's easy to blame it on kids, but for the most part, the offenders are adults who should know better -- the guy who tears through your front yard because there is two feet of untouched powder there, the woman who has a child on the snowmachine who isn't wearing a helmet, because her mom isn't wearing one either.

Contrary to what they want to believe, the paved streets of residential neighborhoods were not put there for drag racing snowmachines, and especially not at the ungodly hour of 3:30 a.m. We didn't put in a backyard to provide snowmachining opportunities for the neighbors, and I'm sure others didn't plan it like that either. And yes, I rented the Fast and the Furious, and I don't need to watch it play out every night on the road outside our house. In any neighborhood, you'll hear the same thing from residents -- I know, because they call me at the newspaper to complain about it.

Take a drive down any road in the Valley and you are bound to see at least a couple instances where a snowmachiner comes flying across an access road, without even stopping to see if there is a car coming. You're also bound to see a snowmachine flying across the snow faster than you are driving, and the rider isn't even wearing a helmet.

Snowmachining is one of the great thrills of the winter, especially when we actually have a winter in which to enjoy the sport. But when you hop on that snowmachine, you should also burden some responsibility and understand what respect is. If you can't respect the property of others, the safety of others and the consideration of others, don't ride in the first place. Just because you can go anywhere doesn't mean you are entitled to those areas.

Enjoy riding, but enjoy it responsibly -- not at the price of neighbors and friends.

Casey Ressler (valleylife@frontiersman.com) is the Valley Life editor.